[staffieri]

We have a family of eight going that people in our group must have a living room. So for the $$ I think are choices are between Saratoga and Old Key West. We would get a two bedroom and a studio. We have four adults and four kids, yougest is 6. We do like to swim. Any thoughts on the location, transpertaion, close to downtown. Suggestions?

Thanks. Just trying to learn.
Kimberly Staffieri

[llama]

First of all - welcome to DC!

We've stayed at both OKW (many times) and Saratogo (past January). They are both beautiful resorts, but my overwhelming favourite is OKW (you can probably tell that from my OKW - FAQ thread).

Saratoga is beautiful - but not complete yet. It's nice to be able to walk to DTD, but it is quite a distance from all the theme parks. We had a car, but I imagine that the bus ride would be considerable. At OKW you can take the boat down to DTD, which is a really nice ride in itself. The buses are very efficient to all the parks. Size wise, OKW suites are much, much larger.

[staffieri]

Thanks!! How long is the boat ride from OKW? I think Saratoga is done. Would that change your mind? Have you seen the new pool at OKW?

[llama]

Originally Posted by staffieri

Thanks!! How long is the boat ride from OKW? I think Saratoga is done. Would that change your mind? Have you seen the new pool at OKW?

Truth is - nothing would change my mind.

The boat ride is about 15 minutes. It depends on which boat you catch - one stops at Saratoga for passengers and one doesn't. But the time difference is only about 5 minutes.

Yes, they unveiled the new waterslide when we were at OKW in January. It's built in the shape of a big sandcastle. Looks very cool. I didn't see it in action, as it opened on our last day there.

[staffieri]

You have been very helpful. Saratoga is now completed but the size of OKW sounds great. I have to make my reservations we are going last week of April. There will be eight of us. Glad I found this site.
Kimberly Staffieri.

[llama]

Originally Posted by staffieri

You have been very helpful. Saratoga is now completed but the size of OKW sounds great. I have to make my reservations we are going last week of April. There will be eight of us. Glad I found this site.
Kimberly Staffieri.

We stayed at both resorts in January. Though the front sections of Saratoga are complete, they are building a whole other section. I can't imagine that it would be completed in a couple of weeks. There was a lot of construction going on. It didn't effect our stay. It's toward the back of the resort.

[mickey]

Originally Posted by staffieri

You have been very helpful. Saratoga is now completed but the size of OKW sounds great. I have to make my reservations we are going last week of April. There will be eight of us. Glad I found this site.
Kimberly Staffieri.

Actually, only Phase 1 of Saratoga Springs is completed and open. Phase 2 is scheduled to be done this summer, and Phase 3 will be done sometime next year. To give you an idea, there are about 184 units available right now, with a total of 828 available when all is completed. Construcion won't bother your vacation much, but you will notice it.

OKW is beautiful, the villas are large and the new slide makes the pool very nice.

Personally, I think I would go with OKW right now, but either is a good choice. I think it will come down to which resort you can find availability at.

One other option would be two cabins at Fort Wilderness. Should save you a bunch of money, they will sleep 6 each, and the resort is nice. Oh, and welcome to DisneyCentral.

[staffieri]

Wow!! You all are so sweet with all your help. I'm going crazy being the one to make all the choices. I sure like the rich beauty look of Saratoga. And my travel agent told me it was completed. Wrong! I like the Ft Wilderness cabins but the pool is nothing, and we love water. Kids pool good times. I would love to hear more about this option. Is it hard to get around? I have seen the cabins on Disney site.
Thanks!!!
Kimberly